Watching the Oilers, Flames and Canucks play in places like Long Island, Atlanta, Tampa and Columbus and then seeing the highlights in many other American cities, it is clear that fans aren’t filling buildings. What can the NHL do?

I don’t think the game itself will grab the casual fans attention, so the NHL has to find a way to get in the psyche of the non-hockey fan. They have to use the Internet, YouTube, Facebook and even Twitter to try and expose their league to more people.

Changing the game will only piss off the fans who like the game, so, please Gary and company don’t come up with asinine ideas that will lead to fewer hits, goals or fights. The game isn’t the problem, how the league markets itself is.

There are lots more they could be doing to promote the game that wouldn’t cost them millions.

Make promotional videos about players that are actually funny, and not so stuffy that it makes fans groan. The NFL Network gives fans a true behind-the-scenes look into their favourite team, player and even opposing teams.

The NHL offers nothing close.

Fans want to feel like they know the players, or learn more about them. Some complain that Peyton Manning does too many commercials, and that might be valid, but when he made this appearance on Saturday Night Live, even non-sports fans laughed.

This is classic, especially when we learned that Manning called an audible during this skit. He adlibbed the part where he yelled at the kid to, “shut the door” in the outhouse. The directors were stunned he did it, but loved it.

Once the NHLPA stops their immature infighting, they should call up SNL and suggest getting one of their players on there. Alex Ovechkin would be great, but some quick-witted guys who might be better include Marty Reasoner, Steve Ott, Craig Conroy and Matt Greene to name a few. The problem is those guys aren’t super stars, and normally they want a big-name player.

The NHL needs to market their players better, nationally or locally. They have to get out of their shell and stop being worried that fans might actually see the personalities of some players. The diehard fans aren’t going anywhere, but if hockey wants to attract new fans, they need to do so via the personalities, not the on-ice product.

Now this next example doesn’t showcase any sort of skill, but the dry humour is funny. I wonder how many of Jason Strudwick’s teammates knew he was in a band called The Bubblegum Boys?

His vocals weren’t great, but it probably made you laugh, moan or cringe, or maybe a bit of all three. “We are a fresh look of the music world,”…or… “We’re kind of like a boy band, but not really.” The humour is what makes this funny. The cheesy stach helps, but I’m curious what is with Strudwick’s socks? Laundry day must have been around the corner. When his voice cracked I roared out loud, and I think it is hilarious how they tried to make it seem like a documentary.

None of those guys are household names, and this wouldn’t be a national bit, but if more teams came up with ideas like this to their own fans, I think they’d love it.

Does the Sidney Crosby Tim Horton’s commercial make a non-hockey fan want to find out more about him? Does Jarome Iginla and his Scotiabank commercial make you want to run out and buy tickets to his next game?

Have some fun.

Hockey fans have a sense of humour, and so do the players. Come up with something creative. The Scotiabank commercial, “Is there an issue Pappa” made people laugh. Imagine if the Dad was an NHL player with a cheesy moustache? Might have been funnier, and at the very least better than the lame road hockey one with Iginla.

Some American NHL teams get it and they have better commercials and promos on their websites. It seems the Canadian teams are worried that the fans might actually see another side of their favourite player.

Guys and girls love self-deprecating humour, or watching someone who can laugh at themselves. So why not show that side of NHL players? They are just people after all.

I have no idea why, but this Manning commercial still cracks me up. I can’t stand Manning on the field, but I respect his acting skills.

Ice woman of the week

I appreciate the boys who are calling for an ice woman in every article, but I’m more about quality over quantity. So we will stick with every Thursday in this feature. I’ve seen a lot of Bauer shoulder pads, but I’ve never seen them look that good. How funny is it that she is holding a left-handed stick, but shooting right!

Random thoughts

I sat beside former referee, Mick McGeough, during the Oilers/Avs game on Wednesday. McGeough is currently one of the officiating evaluators in the league. He watches and evaluates 14-16 games a month. He was in Calgary Tuesday, Edmonton last night and back in Calgary tonight. And don’t worry fans he is just like everyone else. He questions calls. I didn’t see his report, but there were a few calls he didn’t like, some he thought they missed and others that he thought were bang on. He will be on my show again this week to give more insight into officiating.

I said two weeks ago the only thing that would derail Ryan Smyth’s Olympic bid would be a lengthy injury, and now he is out a month. I still think he showed enough to make it, but if doesn’t return before December 31st when they announce the team he might not make it. And that would be devastating for Captain Canada.

Avs D-man Kyle Cumiskey might be the most underrated skater in the league. I think he is top-five. His acceleration is unbelievable and his lateral movement is very close, if not on par with Jay Bouwmeester.

Another class guy announced his retirement this week, when Brendan Shanahan hung up the blades after 21 years which saw him score 656 goals, 1,354 points and 2,489 PIMS. He is a lock for the Hall of Fame, but he needs to be a face of the league in some capacity. He should be an analyst in the States and in Canada. The league would be better served to have him in that capacity than in management for one club.

Assists:Twenty: Joe Thornton and Ryan Getzlaf (five assists again this week)Nineteen: Tomas KaberleEighteen: Nicklas Backstrom and KopitarSeventeen: Mike Green (seven assists this week to get into top five)Sixteen: Vinny Prospal, Paul Stastny Dan Boyle, Nik Antropov and Brad Richards
*** Getzlaf has only two goals with his 20 assists, while Antropov has no goals.***

Final Point

I pointed out earlier this year that it pains me that the Oilers and Flames still play Cotton Eyed Joe at their games. Well, the Oilers finally have must have heard the complaints, because thankfully we haven’t heard it for a few games. And it looks like the Oilers might have new dancers to replace the bald guy who used to take his shirt off and dance up and down the aisle to CEJ back in the 90s. Last night two girls came out of their seats and did some hip hop moves to I Know You Want Me, by Pitbull. Welcome to the 21st Century Oiler brass. I’ve only been to one game at GM Place in Vancouver, but I’m guessing CEJ isn’t on their play list. God help you Canuck fans if it is.

One of Canada's most versatile sports personalities. Jason hosts The Jason Gregor Show, weekdays from 2 to 6 p.m., on TSN 1260, and he writes a column every Monday in the Edmonton Journal. You can follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/JasonGregor

Speaking of the NHLPA, what's the deal with Donald Fehr poking around in there? If they align themselves with him in any serious way, they go from zero credibility to significant negotiating power INSTANTLY. And, that is NOT a good thing for small market teams. Hargrove was a joke, this guy is the real deal.

Why should i care if Atlanta, Long Island, Phoenix, columbus and others arn't selling out? or even getting any attention at all? Better yet, why would i want them to?

It's not important to me that league revenues get as high as possible so everyone associated with the NHL can get a bigger paycheque. I don't want casual american fans and ignorant american buisnessmen buy a team and have any input at all about how the game is played.

In fact wouldn't the skill and play on the ice improve if there were less teams? wouldn't the team i cheer for have a better chance of winning it all if there were less teams? Wouldn't there be stronger rivalries in the league if there were less teams? wouldn't the personal entertainment i get from hockey improve if teams didn't exist in struggling markets?

Maybe somone can enlighten me, and educate me on why it should be important to me that atlanta be able to support there team.

Those gents would be pretty good on SNL, no doubt about it, but I think the player you overlooked was our own Dustin Penner. The guy has a hilarious sense of humour, and is always pulling practical jokes on his teammates (Case in point, the Saw mask in Jasper last season's training camp, scaring young Cogliano, and having Ethan Moreau almost pounding the living crap out of him). If this guy wasn't in hockey, he would definitely have a career in comedy, and I would love to see more of him in commercials or television shows.

I agree 100%, these are the kinds of things the league needs to promote their game.

What about that Ol' George Laraque commercial for the engery drink. I would think something like THAT would get the attention of non-hockey fans... Sadly, as i understand it, the commerical never really made it to air...and all because women got the vote! Damn them!

*Disclaimer: The above was writen in jest. If you are a woman, or you know a woman, please ignore the last part. Thank you -Mgmt.

Interesting piece. I agree whole heartedly with you that the NHL is just not filling buildings. What is even more interesting is that I am going to phoenix in december and looked into going to a few games.

THEY EXPECT ME, AND EVERYONE ELSE, TO PAY $200+ FOR LOWER BOWL TICKETS!

Maybe it is just me, and a few economists, that believe in the laws of supply and demand. If tickets are not selling, what should you do? Perhaps lower ticket prices to attract consumers.

I could not believe $200 for a game in pheonix when they are basically begging people to show up. This is the stupidity of the NHL.

ANyways the above is just probably how I would start to attract fans. Fans who are going to their first nhl game are not gonna be stoked on paying $200+ to st below and not know what they will see, or pay $50 for tickets that are classified as the worst in the arena. Who gets stoked on that? No one. The NHL not only needs to market itself better, but also needs to learn to not be so bloody high on itself and need to compete with NFL+++. It is a different calibre of game. What would happen if edmonton rush tickets were $200 for lower bowl? No one would show up. Same with NHL.

As you can see I am disgusted with the coyotes ticket pricing schedule

I noticed on the the WGN channel that they have some pretty funny spots for the chicago blackhawks when they advertise the weekend hockey games. I'm not sure if every team should market that way, but at least they are getting some TV time in a non hockey slot.

I think a few commercials with Penner and Smid would be pretty amusing. Both have a pretty funny sense of humour.

I have become a fan of sports talk radio. My question to you Jason who gets paid to offer their opinion....I am not talking about Brownlee or Barnes, but what about Bob Mackenzie or when you talk to the GMs and other guests?

@Banger
A few things jump out at me from that one:
1. Big Sexy as a Hab
2. Phil Kessel looking like a hobbit
3. Dany Heatley doing to Martin St. Louis what he did to Edmonton last summer.
Crosby's line at the end is classic. Sadly though, most of NHL marketing is like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kkz6z98TIYk

That Payton Manning United Way skit is one of my top 5 all time SNL favorites. His whole show was amazing.
Lebron's was pretty decent too.
Gretzky's though......not so much.....

I thought the Lebron one and the Brady one were pretty weak. The Peyton one stands out for me as the best for sports hosts.

I remember watching with my parents when Gretz hosted, and we were all howling at how bad it was. The Wakiki Hockey sketch still stands out as one of the worst:
http://s116.photobucket.com/albums/o33/Allison_SNLKid/?action=view&current=WaikikiHockey.flv

I thought the Lebron one and the Brady one were pretty weak. The Peyton one stands out for me as the best for sports hosts.

I remember watching with my parents when Gretz hosted, and we were all howling at how bad it was. The Wakiki Hockey sketch still stands out as one of the worst:
http://s116.photobucket.com/albums/o33/Allison_SNLKid/?action=view&current=WaikikiHockey.flv

1. We have a VHS copy at my dad's house of the Gretzky one for some reason. That was my first introduction to SNL as a tot.

2. I guess maybe I gave the Lebron one a pass because it was one of the only decent ones out of an entire craptacular season. Even still it was decent, especially for an athlete host.

3. I have no recollection of the Brady one. I must have blocked it out of my mind. Dammit he's good looking!

4. Is it it just me, or does adding numbers in front of anything make it look way douchier? Methinks, in my opinion, it does.

LOVE the Final Point! I've been to many games at GM Place and their playlist makes the arena feel like a club. Drink prices at GM are just like a Vancouver club... why not the music? :) I quite enjoy the club-bangers like FLORida's 'Low' or Darude's 'Sandstorm' over CEJ. Though their taste in music is still suspect, props to GM Place for DL'ing some music from the last 5 years instead of subjecting us to an hoedown song.

Lately I keep hearing coaches use the term "compete" or a player has a strong level of compete when referring to players.

This term is really bothering me lately. While I am not an old guy, I don't remember coaches having to comment on a guys complete level 10-15 years ago (Yes some guys mailed it in then too). I get the feeling that while players today are generally faster, stronger and better than 15 years ago but are they were more competitive on the ice.

I could be wrong but does this next generation NHL player less competitive(less bothered by losing) than the guys years ago or this term just a new buzzword?

Lately I keep hearing coaches use the term "compete" or a player has a strong level of compete when referring to players.

This term is really bothering me lately. While I am not an old guy, I don't remember coaches having to comment on a guys complete level 10-15 years ago (Yes some guys mailed it in then too). I get the feeling that while players today are generally faster, stronger and better than 15 years ago but are they were more competitive on the ice.

I could be wrong but does this next generation NHL player less competitive(less bothered by losing) than the guys years ago or this term just a new buzzword?

I would lean towards buzzword on this one. Please see: Roof Daddy, Top Cheese, Gino's and MacBlender.

1. Penner is too funny for SNL. His wit might give the show some credibility again. I agree with Jason though. More could be gained from one 'wicked awesome' funny commercial than 100's of serious commercials. 'Banger' in post 16 was bang on; that commercial still cracks me up.

2. If anyone wants to post a link to a youtube video, but wants the video to start at the good stuff instead of the beginning, add "#t=01m32s" to the end of the link, replacing the 01 with the minute(s) and the 32 with the second(s) into the video before it should begin.

3. Hey Jason, any chance you can get interviews with marketing reps from the NHL and NHLPA? It'd be interesting to see if they agree with you or if they're towing the Buttman line that there's no problem with attendance or revenue.

That's exactly the kind of commercial the NHL would never do. Sadly. If Lays were smart, they'd re-cut that though, that's hilarious, I forgot about that.

Do you guys remember way back when SI had the NHL on the cover and said that the NHL was on the upswing? I remember about 4-5 really excellent commercials and I suspect that may have had something to do with the off ice success. The three that stood out were as follows:

1. Forsberg sitting in a hot tub and being asked if he was concerned about he and his teammates losing their focus after having won the cup. They pan out and show two chicks with him.

Abridged version is as follows

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVgNYaBsuc4

2. Keith Tkachuk "helping" a young woman who locked her keys in the car by smashing it open with his elbow. He skates away on inline skates smiling while she curses him out.

3. Todd Gill being described as a hitter so ferocious that he would hit his own mother if she had the puck. His response? "But at least I'd keep my elbows down"

Then of course there are the Nike goalie ones which were brilliant "Why don't you learn to drive? "why don't you learn to make a kick save meatface!"

Lots of questions, and since I don't know how to reply to many in one like before I will just answer in one post...

@Cool Beans...Of course Manning is a great player, but I hate all his directions at the line of scrimmage. That is all. He might be the most cerebral QB of all time. But I hate the Colts so screw Manning.

@jave 911...If more people learn to like hockey, then more kids will play it, thus more talent. It isn't just about you, it's about the growth of the game. If it is bigger you will get more exposure. So you would rather have a six team league so the Oilers' chances of winning would increase? I'd hate that.

@PRop Jay...I know people who have sat in suites for less than that in Phoenix. I will ask them how they got them, because I know people that have sat in the crowd for $50...

@Cameron...GMs don't get paid to come on sports radio...They might get a GC here and there, but no payment. It is part of promoting their game. Some guests do get paid, but that is rare.

@Rob...I could from the NHL and see what they say. Some American cities, like I wrote, are much better at having fun, edgy spots/promos.

The NHLPA might be tough right now, because they lots on their plate, but it is an area we will address in the future.

P.S...Tune in today and hear Strudwick's answers to his band...his dry humour is entertaining.

Lately I keep hearing coaches use the term "compete" or a player has a strong level of compete when referring to players.

This term is really bothering me lately. While I am not an old guy, I don't remember coaches having to comment on a guys complete level 10-15 years ago (Yes some guys mailed it in then too). I get the feeling that while players today are generally faster, stronger and better than 15 years ago but are they were more competitive on the ice.

I could be wrong but does this next generation NHL player less competitive(less bothered by losing) than the guys years ago or this term just a new buzzword?

Great point. I think alot of it has to do with $$$.

"back in the day" You'd need to have a long, sucessful career to set yourself and your family up for life. Today, it's takes a couple 40 point seasons and you'll never have to work again.

Sounds about right. I checked it out today online. Too bad for Mike. I was really liking his style of play before he got sick and I think he has something to offer this team. Hope he makes a quick rebound.